Chapter 12: 1 Month Ago
「One month ago...」
It took Aevernan quite a while to figure out the route to Guru Mountain in Gaga County.
If not for the seal of Governor Rostov, Aevernan wouldn’t have bothered to examine the travel route to that minor frontier county. Despite the continuous flow of people to Guru Mountain every year, the Government Administrative Office did not see the need to develop an official steam railway there.
What good is there in such a disorderly place? Aevernan murmured to himself.
Indeed, Gaga County, situated in the southeast corner of the Yuweien Continent, was seen by many as an uncivilized land. No respectable Wizards, Scholars, Alchemists, or even Fighters had ever emerged from there. If it weren’t for the White Cloud Fruit, it’s likely no one would even know such a place existed on the Yuweien Continent. Aevernan believed that the soil and water there were only suitable for sustaining a bunch of unruly peasants who used the illusory White Cloud Fruit to deceive people.
If the White Cloud Fruit were real, why didn’t those troublemakers offer it as a tribute? Just look at Rostellum from Gaga County to see how disgusting that place is. Aevernan thought. That sleazy goatee, that time he’d guzzled a large basin of pumpkin soup for a single gold coin, and that wicked smile on his face afterwards...
Ugh, Aevernan tried to push away that unpleasant memory, but Rostellum’s detestable face, as if enchanted by a Wizard’s spell, kept flashing in his mind.
Wait, the man was only a county head, after all. Whereas I, a dignified minister of the Government Administrative Office, can’t seem to get him out of my mind. Damn it, I simply met him once at Babasha’s birthday banquet! If I’d known, I wouldn’t have attended. A large basin of pumpkin soup... my God, how did he manage to drink all of it? Is he even human? He must be a monster. After all, aren’t there rumors of monsters there? Many who visited did not return. Although the place is remote, no one really came back. No wonder the previous minister categorically refused to approve the steam railway to Gaga County. His predecessors didn’t agree either. Naturally, I wouldn’t agree. Regardless of how many people go there. But then again, don’t those who visit such places claim to be distinguished individuals of the Yuweien Continent? They don’t need common rail transport. Their Alchemist skills allow them to effortlessly reach their destinations aided by Flowing Water Beasts. As for those troublemakers... Hmph, they won’t leave that place. Because they are all uncivilized miscreants.
It was as if ten thousand horses—no, ten million steam carriages—were rampaging through Aevernan’s mind, a chaotic mess.
No matter what, he finally figured out a route. Following the Governor’s directive, processed by the Government Administrative Office, he identified the fastest route from Yonder Travel Academy to Guru Mountain in Gaga County. The steam carriages would depart directly from Yonder Travel Academy, take Ros Avenue, and bypass the Bess Mountains into Beiya County. From there, they would head south from the county road in Beiya County directly onto Haino Avenue. Taking Haino Avenue would allow them to avoid the Star River and make it straight to Liuli City. As for getting safely from Liuli City to Guru Mountain in Gaga County, that would now be Babasha’s problem.